Pei Lin paused, his eyes flashing with unreadable emotions.
"What do you mean by that? Are you trying to use your position as Grand Attendant to show off your power?"
"Lin-ge'er, that's not what your father meant,"
Ni hurriedly stepped forward, wanting to grab Pei Lin's sleeve, but her outstretched hand quickly withdrew due to shyness.
“We thought that you were of marriageable age and that since you had a girl you liked, you should ask a matchmaker to come to your door, exchange betrothal gifts, and go through the proper formalities. We shouldn’t neglect her.”
Pei Lin admitted that Ni's words touched him. He had always been afraid that they would put on airs and belittle Yun Ling because of their social status.
But now they know Yunling, know that he is in love with her, and are willing to ask a matchmaker to come to their home to perform the traditional marriage rites and marry her as his wife, giving her all the respect she deserves. Isn't this exactly what he has always wanted?
Seeing that Pei Lin remained silent, Ni Shi boldly took another step closer.
"She seems to be the young lady from the Yun family. She's quite pretty. Did she start out selling herbs at Ren'an Hall? She's very capable and self-reliant."
"Um."
Pei Lin readily agreed. Yun Ling initially collected medicinal herbs to sell at Ren'an Hall, but at that time, he and Shen Changliu were only focused on running around, so they had never met. In fact, it was Elder Zhong who introduced them.
Seeing that Pei Lin's attitude had softened, Madam Ni wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes with relief and continued:
"Such a lovely young lady, we should settle down as soon as possible. We're thinking of going to Pingcheng together after the New Year to invite Uncle Hong to discuss it. Lin-ge, do you think it's better for us to travel by land or by water?"
Pei Lin turned around and looked at Madam Ni, feeling a mix of emotions. He suddenly didn't know how to face them.
He hated them, but as long as Yunling wasn't wronged, he...
Pei Yuan patted Pei Lin on the shoulder with delight and said:
"Let's go inside, sit down and eat, and think things through slowly."
"Yes, yes, let's go inside, it'll be warmer."
Pei Lin was then ushered into the main hall. Ni and the others, being quite perceptive, knew that Pei Lin wouldn't forgive them so easily, so they didn't press the matter.
They wouldn't talk much at the dinner table; the conversation would only revolve around Pei Lin's beloved wife and some local customs and culture of Pingcheng, so as not to put too much pressure on Pei Lin.
As for where to stay, Pei Lin still chose to return to Lu Yinghuai's three-courtyard house, simply because Yunling was there.
Although Madam Ni was reluctant to part with him, she respected Pei Lin's decision. She only let him have afternoon dessert and called a tailor from the clothing shop to measure his size before sending him to the carriage.
Pei Lin returned to the small house near dusk. As he pondered how to face Yun Ling, he saw her already standing in the courtyard. Upon seeing him, she came forward and said:
"Hey, I even made a bet with Tang Ling that you would never come back after returning to that wealthy place. But you came back and made me lose ten coins for nothing."
Pei Lin scoffed and said sarcastically:
"If you hadn't told me, I would have thought it was several hundred strings of cash. You've made me wait in this courtyard for a mere ten copper coins. Master Yun, you're taking money far too seriously."
Seeing that Pei Lin's complexion had improved slightly, Yun Ling asked softly:
"Are you... alright?"
Pei Lin was fine at first, but when Yun Ling asked him about it, he felt a strange sense of grievance welling up inside him. He seemed to be in a bad mood.
"Come with me for a walk outside."
"good."
As night fell, the stalls selling hair ornaments, hairpins, and combs began to set up again. Just as Yunling was about to go over to take a look, she heard Pei Lin speak:
"I was born in Bianjing, the second son of the Pei family."
"Uh-huh."
"My mother is from Qingcheng."
Yunling raised an eyebrow. No wonder this person had been to Qingcheng before and had such insightful views about it. So that's why.
“My father was a fifth-rank official, and I had an older brother who was two years older than me. When I was young, I was very happy. My brother took me all over Bianjing. Whenever my father had a day off or a holiday, our whole family would go out of the city or even to Qingcheng.”
“Those were the happiest times of my childhood. Later, there was internal strife in the palace, and various forces fought for power. The new emperor ascended the throne, and the whole of Bianjing was in a state of panic. My grandmother and grandfather died in the palace turmoil.”
"After their deaths, my father was targeted by several forces and feared he would be beheaded. So, in order to continue the Pei family line, they asked Uncle Hong, whom I now call Grandfather, to send me away from Bianjing on the grounds that I was seriously ill."
Pei Lin finished speaking there, and without saying anything more, Yun Ling could guess the gist of it.
Having been sent away from Bianjing as a child, far from their hometown, and still not brought back to the Pei family at this age, one can imagine the torment they must have endured.
Yunling has never known how to comfort others. She has never experienced the suffering that Pei Lin has gone through. How could she persuade him to do good? How could she so easily make excuses for his parents or speak up for them?
She can't do it, and she doesn't want to.
"You have more experience than your brother, and you also know medicine. With these additional skills, your life will be more exciting."
Pei Lin looked at Yun Ling, and the gloom in his heart vanished completely.
He originally thought Yunling would keep her distance because of his identity, and he thought Yunling would speak up for his parents and give him a lot of reasons to persuade him to reconcile with his parents. He never expected her to say these words and even praise him.
His judgment was absolutely right!
"You...you don't need to praise me. I will treat you to breakfast tomorrow."
"Who praised you? Have some shame."
Pei Lin was overjoyed and couldn't find any words to refute Yun Ling. His mother would soon be planning to marry Yun Ling, and he and she would become a loving couple next year. They would stay together forever and grow old together.
Thinking this, Pei Lin felt like he was floating. He reached out and took Yun Ling's hand, but before he could even touch it, it was shaken off.
"Hey, what's wrong with you, you shorty? Trying to take advantage of me?"
"I wasn't trying to take advantage of you, you little rascal. I was just worried that it was getting dark and I didn't know anyone in Bianjing. What if you got lost? Where would I find you?"
Yunling rolled her eyes at him and waved her hand, saying:
"I've gotten to know this area really well, I might even know it better than you."
"You're so familiar with me, I'd rather not even hold your hand. I'm wearing this ugly men's clothing so people won't misunderstand that I'm into men."
"You're ugly, your whole family is ugly."
After saying that, the two looked at each other and laughed again.
Yunling would always say this when she was arguing with Pei Lin, and Pei Lin would always tease Yunling for only knowing this one sentence. So when this sentence came out, the two of them thought of this incident at the same time and couldn't help but laugh.
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